Formation techniques

Extrusion

 The manufacturing process in which a softened blank of plastic material is forced through a shaped metal piece or die to produce a continuous ribbon of the formed product.

Lamination

Lamination is the process of manufacturing a material in multiple layers so that the composite material achieves improved strength, stability, sound insulation, appearance or other properties from the use of differing materials. A laminate is a permanently assembled object by heat, pressure, welding, or adhesives 

Vacuum forming

Vacuum forming is a simplified version of thermoforming, where a sheet of plastic is heated to a forming temperature, stretched onto a single-surface mold, and forced against the mold by a vacuum. This process can be used to form plastic into permanent objects such as turnpike signs and protective covers. 

Blow molding

Blow molding is a specific manufacturing process by which hollow plastic parts are formed and can be joined together: It is also used for forming glass bottles or other hollow shapes. The blow molding process begins with melting down the plastic and forming it into a prison or, in the case of injection and injection stretch blow molding, a preform. The parison is a tube-like piece of plastic with a hole in one end through which compressed air can pass.

Injection

Injection molding is a manufacturing process for producing parts by injecting molten material into a mold. Injection molding can be performed with a host of materials mainly including metals, glasses, elastomers, confections, and most commonly thermoplastic and thermosetting polymers. Material for the part is fed into a heated barrel, mixed (Using a helical shaped screw), and injected into a mold cavity, where it cools and hardens to the configuration of the cavity.

Compression

Compression molding is the process of molding in which a preheated polymer is placed into an open, heated mold cavity. The mold is then closed with a top plug and compressed in order to have the material contact all areas of the mold.

Compression molding is a high-volume, high-pressure method suitable for molding complex, high-strength fiberglass reinforcements. Advanced composite thermoplastics can also be compression molded with unidirectional tapes, woven fabrics, randomly oriented fiber mat or chopped strand. The advantage of compression molding is its ability to mold large, fairly intricate parts.